Court archive
Court reports mentioning Adare, Limerick
2025-07-30 · Limerick
Matthew O'Connell, aged 75, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for 42 counts of rape committed between July 1979 and June 1987. The victim, who was 13 when the first assault occurred, described how O'Connell groomed her from age ten and raped her repeatedly, often twice a week, in various locations including his home, a mobile home and a vehicle. She kept the abuse secret for decades, only disclosing it to family in the 1990s and to Gardaí in 2021. O'Connell denied the charges and was remanded after conviction. The judge noted the serious impact on the victim, the breach of trust, and the age disparity, setting a headline sentence of 15 years but ultimately imposing a 12‑year term. The case highlighted the prolonged nature of the abuse and the victim's struggle to come forward.
2024-01-24 · Limerick
In a High Court case, Judith Dixon and Liam McLoughlin of The Station House, Curraghbeg, Adare, Co Limerick, challenged a notice from Limerick City and County Council that the council intended to acquire part of their property at Blackabbey, Adare, under the 2007 Water Services Act. The couple argued that the council's action was unconstitutional because the Minister for Housing had not commenced the section of the Act that would allow an appeal against such acquisitions, thereby denying them a constitutional right to appeal. They sought orders to quash the council's notice and declarations that the notice breached their constitutional rights. The case was settled, with the council agreeing to quash the notice and pay the couple's legal costs. The settlement was confirmed by Ms Justice Niamh Hyland, and the case was struck out.
2024-01-19 · Dublin
An extradited criminal, Dragos Cirstea, 38, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for laundering money and purchasing luxury goods with €51,000 stolen from Adare Manor. He pleaded guilty to three money‑laundering counts in Dublin on 3 June 2019 and had four prior UK convictions. Cirstea used a bank card to buy items at Brown Thomas, Arnotts and Weir & Sons, spending €51,044, including a Rolex watch and jewellery worth about €44,000. The money had been sent by a Belgium Vintage Automobile Club to a fraudulent bank account, not to the hotel. No luxury items were recovered. The judge noted Cirstea's guilty plea and good work history as mitigating factors but also his role as a vital link in the criminal enterprise. He will receive credit for time served. The case was heard in the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, with Judge Martin Nolan presiding.
2023-11-27 · Limerick
In a High Court case, Judith Dixon and Liam McLoughlin of Limerick argue that the Minister for Housing failed to commence a section of the 2007 Water Services Act that would allow an appeal against a local council's decision to acquire part of their property. The couple, who live in a protected structure at The Station House, Curraghbeg, claim that the council's notice to take charge of land at Blackabbey, Adare, infringes their constitutional right to appeal and threatens their privacy. They seek judicial review orders to quash the council's notice, declare the notice a breach of constitutional rights, and affirm that the Minister's failure to enact the relevant section denies them an appeal right. The case was granted permission to proceed by Ms Justice Niamh Hyland and is set to return to the High Court in January.
2023-02-13 · Wicklow
In a February 2023 decision, the Workplace Relations Commission dismissed the unfair dismissal claim of Fine Gael councillor Edward Timmins, who had alleged a sham redundancy at AB Group Packaging Ireland Ltd. Timmins, a former finance director, claimed he was forced out after a dispute with owner Dermot Brady over cash withdrawals. The commission found that Timmins had not raised any interpersonal complaints before the redundancy notice and that the company had a legitimate redundancy plan following a failed U.S. expansion. Timmins' refusal to participate in the employer‑led appeal process was deemed a major mistake, preventing him from presenting his arguments. The tribunal concluded the redundancy was genuine and rejected Timmins' claim, concluding the case after four hearings and a second adjudicating officer was appointed following a conflict‑of‑interest request by Timmins' counsel.
2023-01-30 · Donegal
The Workplace Relations Commission has dismissed the unfair dismissal claim of care worker Varghese Matthew. In a decision published Monday, adjudicating officer Janet Hughes found that Matthew's dismissal by Donegal Home Care Ltd, trading as Home Instead Senior Care, was reasonable. The case concerned an incident on 1 April 2020 at Ballywaltrim House in Raphoe, Co Donegal, where a patient with an intellectual disability was found on an excrement-strewn floor after being locked in his room overnight. Matthew alleged he was instructed by a staff member to act as a doorkeeper and stay outside the room, a direction he claimed originated from an HSE employee. He stated he only discovered the door was locked after the other worker left. The tribunal found no malice or deliberate neglect on Matthew's part but determined his actions were based on "unquestioning adherence" to that direction. The officer concluded that speaking to the service user through a glass panel for four hours reached a threshold of gross misconduct due to incompetence and a failure to provide sound professional judgment. Although the officer noted Matthew was effectively a "scapegoat" and that the employer's investigation was delayed and limited, she upheld the dismissal, finding it reasonable for the employer to conclude Matthew's primary responsibility was to the service user, not to staff instructions.
2022-10-14 · Dublin
In a case heard at the Court of Appeal, Martina Rooney, aged 40, was found not to have successfully overturned an eight‑year jail sentence for a violent assault that took place in Temple Bar, Dublin, on 13 June 2020. The assault involved Rooney repeatedly stabbing a woman over a missing €50 note, with the attack described as "barbarous" and aggravated by a sexual element that "humiliated intimate body parts." Medical reports noted extensive facial bruising and lacerations to the back, buttock and thigh, and the victim was also stabbed in the eye. Rooney had pleaded guilty to assault causing serious harm and robbery, and the Court of Appeal upheld the original sentence, noting the seriousness of the offence and the mitigating factors presented by her drug‑addiction background. Her co‑accused, Karl Fishe, 36, received a two‑year sentence for his role in the assault.
2022-07-25 · Dublin
Chico Makamda, 39, was returned to jail for two years after failing to leave Ireland as required by his 2019 sentence. He had been sentenced to seven and a half years, with the final two and a half years suspended on the condition that he leave the country within 14 days of release. Makamda was released in January 2022 but did not depart, and he accrued two convictions for failing to notify the Gardaí of his address under the Sex Offenders Act. He was re‑arrested in June and has been in custody since. The court reactivated the suspended portion of his sentence, noting he had made no genuine effort to comply with the condition. The hearing reaffirmed his willingness to leave, but the judge found he had intentionally refused to comply. The case also referenced his earlier conviction for sexual assault, false imprisonment and robbery in 2018. Chico Makamda pleaded guilty.
2022-05-06 · Wicklow
Edward Timmins, a Fine Gael councillor and former finance director of AB Group Packaging Ireland Ltd, claims he was unfairly made redundant in 2020 after 19 years with the company. He alleges the redundancy was a sham driven by interpersonal difficulties with owner Dermot Brady, rather than genuine financial restructuring. The company contends the role was eliminated to make the business more agile following a failed U.S. expansion and a shift to a new software system. Timmins says he was told his position was at risk due to the company's withdrawal from the U.S. market and cost‑cutting needs, and that he was offered statutory redundancy pay and a six‑month notice period. He disputes the process as "baseless" and "railroaded," while the company's HR consultant, Mark Slattery, maintains the redundancy was part of a legitimate restructuring plan. The Workplace Relations Commission has adjourned the case for further cross‑examination.
2021-07-28 · Dublin
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, Judge Elma Sheahan condemned the brutal assault carried out by Martina Rooney (39) against another woman over a €50 dispute. Rooney repeatedly punched and stabbed the victim, causing extensive facial bruising and lacerations to the back, buttock and thigh. She was sentenced to nine years' imprisonment, with the final 12 months suspended on strict conditions. Karl Fishe (35), who assisted by holding the victim's hair, received a two‑year and eight‑month sentence, with the final eight months suspended and a 16‑month probation period. The court noted the attack's duration of about nine minutes and the victim's lasting physical and psychological harm, including panic attacks and loss of joy over an impending pregnancy. Rooney's prior 73 convictions and Fishe's 124 convictions were also recorded. The case was built on CCTV, DNA evidence and Garda testimony. Martina Rooney pleaded guilty. Karl Fishe pleaded guilty.
2021-02-22 · Limerick
Tomas Mikalajunas, 41, a Lithuanian national, was sentenced by the Court of Appeal to two years and nine months in prison for two burglaries and one criminal damage charge. He had originally received a suspended five‑year, six‑month sentence after a 2016 incident in which a Garda's accidental gun discharge left him with life‑changing injuries, including difficulty speaking and eating. The burglaries involved a pharmacy in Kinsale (January 2015) where €60,000 of high‑end perfumes were stolen, and a boutique in Adare (2016) where €80,000 of clothing was taken. The Court of Appeal found the original sentence unduly lenient and imposed the new term, with no portion suspended, while also imposing a concurrent two‑year sentence for criminal damage. Mikalajunas was present via video link from Lithuania. Tomas Mikalajunas pleaded guilty.
2020-12-02 · Dublin
In a laneway on Adare Lane, Andrew Stammers died of a drug overdose during the night of 19 October 2017. Owen Comerford (34) and his accomplice, John Murdiff (33), entered the lane and rummaged through Stammers' pockets, taking cigarettes, cash and other items. They later returned to alert emergency services, staying with Stammers until medical help arrived. The court heard that Stammers had been off drugs for years and had been a recovering addict. Judge Melanie Greally found the theft an opportunistic crime against a vulnerable man who was either dead or dying, imposing an 18‑month prison term. Comerford's earlier convictions for burglary and threatening offences added an additional five and a half years, with 12 months suspended on condition of drug‑treatment participation. Murdiff received a two‑year sentence for his role in the theft. The case highlighted the distress caused to Stammers' grieving partner and the broader impact on the community. Owen Comerford pleaded guilty.
2020-03-18 · Dublin
In October 2017, John Murdiff, aged 33, and an accomplice stole items from Andrew Stammers, a former heroin addict, in Adare Lane, Dublin. Stammers had overdosed that night, but it could not be determined whether he was dead when the theft occurred. Murdiff later returned to the lane, discovered Stammers was not breathing, and sought help. He was charged with theft and pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. Murdiff had 50 prior convictions, including theft, public order, and assault causing harm. He was sentenced to two years' imprisonment, consecutive to a three‑year term for assault, after a judge noted his remorse and the tragic circumstances surrounding Stammers' death. The case highlighted the difficulties in determining the exact time of Stammers' death and the impact on his family.
2019-12-17 · Dublin
Sean Howard, aged 32, was sentenced to two and a half years' imprisonment for arson after a fire he claimed was started to keep warm spiralled out of control. The blaze began when he lit a piece of cardboard in a bin behind the Temple Bar Hotel in Dublin on 28 April 2019 while intoxicated and under the influence of drugs. The fire melted the bins, damaged the hotel's back wall, boiler and double metal doors, and forced the evacuation of 236 guests. Howard pleaded guilty to arson at the hotel and to a prior arson on 3 April 2019, which caused €3,000 of damage and required the evacuation of two rooms. He has 132 previous convictions, including three for arson, and the judge cited his substance use as a major problem. The sentence was three and a half years, with the final 12 months suspended on strict conditions.
2019-07-08 · Dublin
Ciaran Casey, 25, of Adare Park, Coolock, pleaded guilty to stealing about €8,000 from a Centra shop on New Cabra Road in Dublin on 18 January last year. He admitted that while working the cash register he voided high‑value items such as cigarettes and alcohol, pocketing the money. CCTV footage showed him voiding transactions and customers walking away with the items. Gardaí arrested him after an investigation and he made full admissions, saying he was taking the money to pay day‑to‑day debts and that he intended to repay it later. Judge John O'Connor, at the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, found it disappointing that Casey had only offered to repay €1,000. He imposed a two‑year sentence, fully suspended for five years, and ordered Casey to undertake offence‑focused and victim‑focused work as directed by Probation Services. The judge noted Casey's past lack of cooperation with Probation Services.
2019-03-05 · Dublin
Chico Makamda, 36, of Viking House, Waterford, pleaded guilty in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to sexual assault, false imprisonment and robbery committed on April 16, 2018, in Adare Lane, Dublin. He attacked a woman in her early fifties who was relieving herself behind bins, punching her three times, attempting to pull her jeans down, and masturbating in front of her. The victim fell, hit her head, and later discovered her wallet and phone missing. Makamda fled when another man arrived. He was sentenced to seven and a half years for false imprisonment and robbery, with the final two and a half years suspended for two and a half years on the condition he leave the country within 14 days of release. He received a concurrent four‑year sentence for sexual assault, backdated to the day of his first custody. The judge noted the victim's severe trauma and the aggravated nature of the offences.
2019-01-28 · Limerick
Liam O'Dwyer, 45, of Capparoe, Adare, Co. Limerick, was sentenced to 11 years' imprisonment for eight counts of sexual assault, four counts of rape and one count of oral rape after a retrial. The offences occurred in his then partner's bedroom between October 1996 and December 2001, when the victim was aged 12 to 17. O'Dwyer denied the charges. Witnesses described him as obsessed with the girl, calling the house repeatedly and insisting on knowing her whereabouts. The victim, who later struggled with drug addiction and PTSD, gave a victim impact statement describing ongoing fear and trauma. The judge noted O'Dwyer was groomed into submission and, despite his denial, imposed the sentence and ordered three years of post‑release supervision. The court heard he had six prior convictions, including assault and false imprisonment. The victim's partner remains supportive of O'Dwyer's innocence.
2018-12-04 · Limerick
In a Special Criminal Court case, Dublin men Conor Hughes (41) and Darren Fox (28) pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a Winchester 12‑gauge, sawn‑off, double‑barrel shotgun and two 12‑gauge cartridges. The weapons were seized on 31 October 2015 in a stolen car in Limerick, where a loaded shotgun, a jerry can of petrol and matches were found. The men were wearing gloves and hoodies, and the shotgun's serial number had been removed. Both had clean criminal records. The court sentenced them to seven years' imprisonment on 2 October 2017, a sentence upheld by the Court of Appeal on 4 December 2018. The appeal was dismissed, with the Court of Appeal noting the seriousness of a sawn‑off shotgun, its readiness to fire, and the connection to IRA activity as factors justifying the sentence.
2016-12-19 · Dublin
Christopher Coakley, aged 25, was sentenced to six years in prison for hijacking a nurse's car while in a drug‑induced psychosis. The incident occurred early on 6 April 2015 near Temple Street Hospital when Coakley forced a nurse to hand over her keys, then reversed the vehicle without lights, later colliding with another car. The nurse's car was ultimately found burnt out. Coakley had previously pleaded guilty to attempted robbery at Ladbrokes in December 2014, unlawful seizure of a car in April 2015, and criminal damage to two cars. He already serves a six‑year term for an armed robbery imposed in December 2014 and a three‑year term for a 2012 hijacking. Judge Patricia Ryan imposed a six‑year sentence with the final two years suspended, ordering 18 months of probation, drug treatment and employment or educational courses. The sentence does not extend his time in custody, and he is due for release in 2020.
2015-06-12 · Dublin
John Wilson, 56, of Oliver Bond Street, Dublin, was sentenced to eight years in prison at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for his involvement in a €528,000 cannabis operation. Judge Martin Nolan imposed the sentence, backdated to February of this year, stating Wilson deserved the same term as his co-accused. Wilson pleaded guilty to possessing 88kg of cannabis at Forrest Little Road, Swords, on August 8, 2008. He had previously taken a bench warrant in 2011 and was rearrested in England earlier this year after serving a five-year UK sentence for conspiring to supply cannabis. His co-accused, Joseph Douglas, 38, and James Griffin, 48, were both jailed for eight years for the same offence in 2011. Robert Wilson, 51, received a ten-year sentence in 2011, with the final two years suspended. Detective Sergeant Emmet Casserly testified that surveillance linked Wilson's phone and pickup truck to the loading of 370 slabs of cannabis into a van driven by Griffin. Defence counsel Sean Gillane SC argued for leniency, noting Wilson had "buried his head in the sand" by fleeing. The court accepted that a person above Wilson guided the operation. This sentencing concludes the proceedings for Wilson, while the matters for Douglas, Griffin, and Robert Wilson were finalised in 2011.
2015-03-09 · Dublin
In Swords District Court, Mark Sheehan (25) pleaded guilty to driving without insurance and had his case adjourned until April 13th following a request from the Probation Service for further assessment. Sheehan has 15 previous convictions and was previously given a six-month suspended sentence and a six-year driving disqualification. Michael Reilly (21) pleaded guilty to stealing a remote controlled car and was convicted in his absence. As he did not appear to pay the €250 compensation, Judge Dempsey imposed a default order and fined him €250. Helen McDonnell (25) pleaded guilty to using a false driving licence and stealing groceries. Her case was adjourned until March 30th for a repayment meeting with the furniture store and to provide proof of arrangements. Adrian O'Reilly (50) pleaded guilty to being intoxicated and using threatening and abusive behaviour. Judge Dempsey ordered him to make a charitable donation of €250 to Pieta House and applied Section 1.1 of the Probation Act.
2015-01-20 · Dublin
Joseph Cullen, 46, was convicted of assault causing serious harm to Kevin Byrne, who was hit by a car and lost his foot. Cullen pleaded not guilty to alternative counts of assault causing harm and assault causing serious harm. A jury found him guilty and Judge Patricia Ryan sentenced him to 12 years imprisonment on 20 December 2010. Cullen appealed the conviction but the Court of Appeal upheld the conviction and reduced the sentence to nine years imprisonment. The appeal was based on the argument that the prosecution had not indicated joint enterprise until the closing speech, and that Cullen had no basis to believe he faced both counts. The Court of Appeal found no ambush and that the charges were alternatives, but that the original sentence was too high. The new sentence of nine years was imposed by the Court of Appeal.